Sweet Dreams
by LuckyKaz
Summary: Older!Chris is being haunted by memories and gets a surprise visit to relieve him of his worries. Oneshot, hinted D/Leon, if you squint. Set after the last volume.


I just finished Petshop Of Horrors and it was SO great ;O; And of course I had this mad desire to do a fanfiction for it so I wrote this thing, which I am really not entirely pleased with. The first draft was full of D/Leon and was almost completely different, but I revised it because it didn't seem to flow as well as this version did.I'm suffering severe writer's block right now so I apologize if it's not as good as it could be..

Well, I hope you like it, and please review!

* * *

There were still times when Chris would sit back, relax, and reminisce his brains out.

He didn't do it often. Thinking back on all of those fond memories of the pet shop usually made him depressed and sometimes-although he'd never tell anyone-teary, and he felt ridiculous sitting there and bemoaning something that had happened during his childhood, like one of those headcases who spent all their time at a shrink. He'd worked his hardest to become a cop and that had kept his mind occupied for the past few years..kept his mind off of his older brother, who had abandoned everything and left to find Count D with one statement: "He left something behind."-off of the happy memories of the pet shop, of the great friends who'd disappeared when he'd regained his voice and left them for good.

He'd had some time to himself lately and he'd been doing well-he'd had a few dates with this cheerful girl who waitressed at a restaurant he frequented, he was top in the force right now..his mood SHOULD have been through the roof.

It was just..the nightmares.

Chris didn't really like to view them as 'nightmares', because they weren't very frightening. It was more like a couple hundred flashbacks, all playing at once, a mix of voices and color and sound that completely overloaded his brain and had him wake up bathed in a cold sweat, his hands shaking. They were haunting; But the main problem was he could never get to sleep afterwards..

"..Chris? Chris!"

Chris started, blinking and swiveling around in his chair. Jill gazed down at him, her hands on her hips, her lips a thin line. Jill was still on the force, even though gray now mixed in with her golden blond curls.

"S-Sorry," Chris stammered. "I'm just a little-"

"Tired, I know. Chris, you really should visit a doctor or something. A sleepy cop is NOT a good cop by any means, and you've been like this for two weeks straight. It's a wonder you haven't passed out on the job yet!"

"I know." Chris mumbled miserably. Since Leon had left, Chris had taken to confiding in Jill-She was a stand-in, a replacement for all of the important people missing in his life. But even to her he couldn't say he was being kept up by nightmares...His pride simply wouldn't allow it.

Jill traced the bags under his eyes with warm fingers. "You're exhausted." she sighed. "I'll finish your paperwork up. Go home and try to get some rest. You're off tomorrow, aren't you?"

"Yes, but, you really don't have to-"

"Shut it and go home, kiddo. I'm fine here, trust me." she flashed him a grin and heaved him out of his chair with a surprisingly strong grip on his shoulders. "Come on, shoo."

"Thanks, Jill." he said, giving her a weak, but genuine, smile. She waved him away and he hurried out of the station, pulling on his jacket as he headed out the door.

He had to take advantage of this. He had to man up and just...get some sleep.

But how in the world could he stand up to a dream?

* * *

"Chris..Chris!"

Geez, what was it? He'd just gotten to sleep, he NEEDED this sleep...Go away...

"Oh come _on_, Chris, I didn't come all the way here so you could lay around and ignore me, you lazy human."

Chris frowned. That voice sounded way familiar...

"CHRIS!"

Something small and blunt pounced on his chest and he gasped, eyes popping open. "What-the-"

"My, Chris, How you've grown...I'm glad to say your decor is nothing like your brother's..."

Chris shot up in bed so fast that his head smacked against his headboard, but he paid it no mind, quickly grabbing the cord of the lamp next to his bed and yanking so that his room filled with a soft glow.

His bed was surrounded by people; odd, strangely clothed people, people who wore expressions of wondrous recognition.

"Chris, you're so old!"

He turned disbelievingly. Pon-chan was sitting on her knees beside him on the edge of the bed with a smile on her little round face, looking not a day past the last time he'd seen her.

"P-Pon-chan..Is this..." He didn't want to believe it was just another dream, it felt so real, he wanted it so badly to be real...

"Take a breath, Chris, goodness."

Chris hadn't even realized he'd been holding it until he exhaled, his eyes searching the dim light around his bed for the source to that one voice he'd been longing to hear.

And there he was; standing beside the window, framed by the moonlight filtering through his curtains. The Count D he knew so well smiled at him, his delicate and oh-so-feminine frame gliding to the bed. Somehow, Chris was not surprised at all to see that the Count looked the same as well.

His breath caught in his throat as D tilted up his chin to examine his face. It was if Chris was young again, and the Count was dabbing his cheeks with a tissue after he'd come to him with tear-stained cheeks.

"You look...very like him." The Count said simply, although the words sounded pained. Chris thought he knew why.

"He's been..Leon's been...looking for you...Why would you come here?" Chris managed. He was trying very hard to not jump out of bed and shout with glee, to hug every one of them, to ask what had happened-

"Because you needed us. Just for tonight. It's important for a detective to get his rest."

"But-What? No, Leon needs you! Leon's been searching for you, Leon-"

"Hush, Chris." The Count said, frowning. "I know very well what my dear detective is doing, don't worry." His cheeks colored slightly. "I've been keeping an eye on him."

"Then why come to me..and not him..Count, I've really, I've missed all of you so much, but Leon-"

"Leon is fine. I didn't think coming to visit you tonight was a very good idea anyway, but the rest of them were very persistent."

Chris glanced around himself at all of the people, all of the _pets_-and realized just how much he'd missed them, just how much seeing them again meant to his heart.

"Go to sleep, Chris. You have nothing else to worry about."

"Bu-"

A cool, slender hand slid behind his neck and gently pressed. A small gasp escaped from Chris' lips and he was out, falling back onto his pillow with a small snore.

Count D smirked, concealing a small giggle behind his hand. "Maybe you are not so unlike your brother, after all." he ran his fingers through Chris's soft blond locks, then stepped back.

"You deserve a good rest."

T-chan wrapped an arm around Chris's waist and pulled him close; Pon-chan curled up by his chest, feeling his heartbeat, calm and slow, beneath his skin. The rest of the pets found their places comfortably around him in a protective circle.

They had missed this special boy, this special man.

Count D smiled and let them be, leaving through the window, disappearing into the night.

Meanwhile, Chris gave a happy sigh in his sleep; there were no nightmares.

* * *

He woke up the next morning feeling utterly refreshed and very alone; not a single hair had been left behind.

But there _was_ a small hard candy lying on his pillow.


End file.
